A grieving son is forced into the ultimate fight for survival in WHALEFALL, an intense new thriller from writer-director Brian Duffield. Starring Austin Abrams, Josh Brolin, Elisabeth Shue, John Ortiz, Jane Levy, and Emily Rudd, the film takes a deeply personal story of family, loss, and survival and places it inside one of the most terrifying environments imaginable: the belly of a massive sperm whale.
The Plot
Following the death of his father, Jay Gardiner heads into the waters off California’s Central Coast to search for his father’s remains. What begins as an emotional journey quickly becomes a nightmare when Jay is swallowed by a gigantic sperm whale.
Trapped inside the whale with only one hour of oxygen remaining, Jay must find a way to survive the impossible situation. As the clock continues to tick, memories of his father and the lessons he taught him begin to take on new meaning.
With his life hanging in the balance, Jay realizes that the knowledge passed down by his father may be the very thing that can help him escape.
Whalefall
- Director: Brian Duffield
- Starring: Austin Abrams, Josh Brolin, Elisabeth Shue, John Ortiz, Jane Levy, Emily Rudd
- Genre: Thriller, Horror
- Runtime: 98 mins
A Claustrophobic Survival Thriller
WHALEFALL looks set to combine the tension of a survival movie with an emotional story about grief and the complicated relationship between a father and son.
Rather than simply relying on the spectacle of its extraordinary premise, the film places Jay’s relationship with his late father at the center of the story. His desperate struggle to survive becomes intertwined with the memories, regrets, and lessons that have shaped his life.
The result promises to be a claustrophobic thriller where the danger isn’t simply what surrounds Jay; it’s also the limited time he has left.
Cast
Austin Abrams stars as Jay Gardiner, the young man fighting to escape the whale.
The cast also includes:
- Josh Brolin as Mitt Gardiner
- Elisabeth Shue as Zara Gardiner
- John Ortiz as Hewey
- Jane Levy as Eva Gardiner
- Emily Rudd as Nan Gardiner
The combination of Abrams’ leading performance with veterans including Brolin, Shue and Ortiz gives the film a strong dramatic foundation beneath its survival-thriller premise.
Director & Screenplay
Brian Duffield serves as director and co-screenwriter, with Daniel Kraus also contributing to the screenplay.
Duffield has become known for genre stories that place characters in extraordinarily dangerous situations while keeping their emotional journeys at the heart of the narrative. WHALEFALL appears to continue that approach, using an almost unbelievable survival scenario to explore family, grief and perseverance.
Release Date
WHALEFALL opens exclusively in theatres on October 16, 2026
